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Сonsultation

Recently there appear more and more bottles with plastic or screw-tops. Why?

Appearance of such tops is mainly caused by the problems with the classical corks.

Each year the world winemaking looses dozens millions of dollars because of the cork disease. According to the statistics data, from 3 to 5% of wines develop the objectionable odor and not characteristic taste from the classical corks. Contact of certain cork components with chlorine (disinfection), dampness and sulfur results in side effects. And no one is secured from this.

Plastic or screw tops (стелвин) that do not affect the wine’s bouquet and taste present a good alternative. Currently new tops are used mainly for young wines.

What is the right way to store the wine?

In the first place, most wine should not be stored for long, since they are ready for use or they should be consumed young. But if you have decided to store the wine, then the best option would be either a wine fridge or cellar. In case that they are not available, the wine should be stored in the horizontal position (so that the cork does not shrink) away from light and vibrations. It is also advisable that you keep it in a cool place. For instance, you can keep it on a cool floor under your bed. However you should not store the wine for more than a year without any special conditions

How long can you keep the wine?

Each wine has its own life time. Most of the wines, which were not aged in a barrel, should be consumed young. The exceptions are classical Rieslings and finest Chablis. Red wines aged in barrels can be stored and improve from 3 to 10 years, and the finest ones – 20-30 years. Fortified and dessert wines by established producers can be stored for decades.

What does it mean that the wine is not ready for use?

When going on sale certain wines are not ready for use. This mainly refers to the wines that have been long aged in barrels, dessert wines and the finest white ones, since their aroma and taste do not reveal themselves at once. After the barrel the wine can be rather rough, astringent and not balanced on the palate. For example, Bordeaux from the great chateaus is recommended for consumption after 10-15 years of aging in a bottle.

Serving Temperature.

Champagne, white dessert wines, rose wines and most of the white wines should be served chilled to 5-7С^o.

Wines made of Chardonnay variety and certain finest wines should be chilled to 10-12 С^o.

The serving temperature for red wines depends on their richness and quality. The lighter and younger the wine, the lower is the temperature. For instance, Божоле or young Pinot Noir should be chilled to 14-16С^o. And on the contrary, the richer and more powerful the wine, the higher is the serving temperature: Amarone, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz should be served at 18-20С^o.

Food Pairing.

Wine and food should complement each other or at least none of them should predominate. For example, a powerful red wine will not let you enjoy delicate white fish and a light white wine will impart a classical steak with an acid taste. There is a great variety of accompaniments: the classical pairing is that white wines go with fish, sea food and white meats, and red wines – with red meat.

Rose wine and champagnes are universal food companions.

Dessert wines should be enjoyed with desserts.

Buying Wine.

Buying wine is a rather painful process taking into account the wide choice and lack of knowledge.

The wine with a garish label, exciting legend (a curved neck is bowing to the King) and a sonorous name (Medoc, Chateau X) is not likely to be of a high quality.

Buying France, do not be thrifty and try to remember specific makers.

Italy offers a wider choice and more reasonable prices; however the quality is often very high.

Avoid buying Кьянти in straw bottles and ignore the DOCG status – it only reflects traditional character of the style and not necessarily the quality. Italy’s finest wines are Brunello, Amarone, Barolo and Super Tuscan wines. The best producer is Antinori; it offers a wide range of wines from various regions, which includes inexpensive wines and most exclusive ones.

In Spain do not hesitate to buy Rioja – it has a good parity of quality and price.

And without any doubt, the most reliable and easy buy are the New World’s wines (USA, Australia, Israel, Republic of South Africa, Chile, Argentina and Uruguay). They have clear varietal names, bright style and the unbeatable parity of quality and price, especially in South America.

Wines from Georgia are not very reliable, because at the present days the quantity of “Georgian wines” is far beyond the quantity of the raw materials available in Georgia (vineyards). That is why, after buying the Georgian wine you run the risk of getting a rather expensive bottle with Moldavian or Bulgarian wine that was bottled in Georgia.

As for Ukrainian wines, there are some quite good fortified wines in Crimea.

Always pay attention to the distributor – some specialize in cheap mass consumption and illiquid products from the abroad. It is really hard to find any decent wine there.